Meet Patrick James Lynch | Business Owner & Filmmaker

We had the good fortune of connecting with Patrick James Lynch and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Patrick James, can you share the most important lesson you’ve learned over the course of your career?
Reality is the best asset. As a creative, I can spend a lot of time “creating” and forget that the world around me — the people, buildings, animals, lighting, ideas, all of it! — has so much more to offer than anything my siloed mind will come up with. As both a creative and a business owner, it’s easy to get caught up in my own ideas, or in the aspirations of where I want to go; where I’m trying to take my company. Recalling that “reality is the best asset” grounds me in what’s available and what’s true. Then it’s up to my strategy side to think through how to best leverage that position. I think sometimes people are too scared of the part where developing an innovative strategy might be called upon and instead perform mental gymnastics or engage in self-delusion to change their “analysis” of a situation. That’s never going to work, in the long run. Use what you have, to the best you can. Be honest, then be smart.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I was born with the blood disorder hemophilia; the same disorder that took my brother’s life 18. I didn’t know it at the time, but his death was the moment the rest of my life was intent to be built upon. I graduated from the country’s premiere undergraduate acting conservatory (s/o Boston University!) and began working right away. I wasn’t satisfied, and one drama therapy workshop with addicts living in New York City’s Lower East Side taught me that in order to find that satisfaction, I needed to create work that mattered; work that I could see was making a meaningful impact on people. I started attending hemophilia and blood disorder patient education meetings and advocacy trainings. I read needs assessments, publications on gaps in care, and spoke with key opinion leaders about underserved populations. The result of all that was learning children and families affected by rare chronic blood diseases had a tremendous amount on their plate and could use some more innovative means of engaging community support and learning critical information. Believe Limited started by creating a web series- Stop The Bleeding!, which just finished its 10th season!- and as person after person asked, “What are you working on next?” my partner Ryan and I knew we were onto something special.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Well it’ll bore you to know that I’m a socially anxious hermit who, since being married and welcoming a dog into the house, has a very tame idea of “best time ever!” That said, seeing as I’m from New York and my wife’s from Ohio, our out-of-towners are generally coming in from cold weather, so I’ll recommend they spend times on the beaches south of LAX (Manhattan, Hermosa, Redondo) as opposed to the more touristy beaches they’d otherwise be more inclined to go to. I also push local food spots in the South Bay, where I live, since I’ve discovered no shortage of incredible and varied restaurants and food trucks throughout Hawthorne, Lawndale, Gardena, Inglewood, and Crenshaw. And if people are spending time “south of LAX,” I’ll recommend they take a drive through Palos Verdes. It’s such a unique, lush, winding and enchanted little nook at the south end of our city that people don’t take enough advantage of even just driving through to shake up the brain a bit!

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
I dedicate this shoutout to my partner at Believe Limited, Ryan Gielen, and to all the staff and contractors who’ve given of themselves to serve Believe’s mission these past 8 years. In the end, you’re what makes us special. Thank you.

Website: patrickjameslynch.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/patrickjameslynch
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/believepatrick/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/pjlynch
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PatrickJamesLynch/
Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/bloodstreammedia

Image Credits
Joshua Sterling Bragg Brad Reeb Rob Bradford Ryan Gielen Russ Rowland